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The company's business strategy is to acquire software startups, and then hold them for the long term.[2] It has acquired over 260 startups since being founded.[2] It focuses on vertical market software companies (i.e. those that create software for a particular industry or market, as opposed to creating software usable for a wide variety of markets).[4] Most of its acquisitions are relatively small (for less than $5 million),[4] although the company has indicated that it may pursue larger acquisitions in the future.[2] For instance, Constellation acquired Acceo Solutions for $250 million in January 2018, the second-largest acquisition in its history.[5] Although the company has experienced great success with this strategy in the past (its stock has increased 30 times since its IPO in 2006), it has experienced more competition in acquiring companies in recent years,[2] especially from private equity and hedge funds. As of 2016, 67% of revenue was from customers in the public sector, while the other 33% was from customers in the private sector.[6] 12% of revenue was from Canada, 52% from the US, 30% from Europe, and 5% from the rest of the world.[6]

In 2016, the founder of Innoprise Software sued Harris Computer Systems for giving away its software for free, thus reducing the value of a revenue-sharing agreement.[11][2] The founder and chairman of Constellation Software, Mark Leonard, has maintained a low profile, declining media interviews and making few public appearances.[4]

In mid-2018, the company cancelled its quarterly earnings calls, a highly unusual step for a public company.[5] Analysts suggest the company took this step because it was worried about leaking information about potential acquisitions to its competitors.